Travel Agency Takes Toys On Vacation For Owners Too Sick To Go Themselves

And now, a gentle tug on you heart strings to finish out the day. Are you ready? Okay: There’s a travel agency in Japan that brings stuffed animals and other treasured toys on vacation when their owners are too sick to travel, so they can experience far-flung destinations vicariously. And… cue heart string tugging.

Unagi Travel’s founder has been taking favorite toys on trips for the last three years, so that their ill owners can see a bit of the world through the little guys’ eyes, reports ABC News.

Wherever the founder goes, a crew of stuffed pals goes with her for a fee from about $35 to $55 per animal. That cost includes return shipping and a memento photograph, while owners can follow along on their toy’s adventures via updates on the Unagi Travel Facebook page.

“You made it! Is it raining? You two wear lovely hats,” one owner wrote under a photo with twin plush dogs flanking a Buddha statue.

Sometimes the owners are even able to return to the destinations their animals have already visited if they become well enough.

“Recently I asked 25 clients if they became interested in traveling to the areas their stuffed animals visited,” the founder said, “and all 25 of them answered yes.”

It seems the trips are limited to Japan for now, but we can see a sweet idea like this spreading around the globe.

Japanese Travel Agency For Stuffed Animals Is on Sweet Mission [ABC News]

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